Curly Girl Challenge Winners Announced

Through a nationwide contest with NaturallyCurly.com, Lorraine Massey, the original Curly Girl, and a team of curl advocates from DevaCurl, selected three winners who accepted the Curly Girl Challenge and embraced their curls.

When Deva invited women to “Do the Deva 3-Step: cleanse, hydrate, style”, hundreds of enthusiastic curlies tried Deva’s botanically-infused, sulfate-free line of curly hair care and they couldn’t wait to share their results.

Curly Girl Challenge winner Jesse Reese.

“Thanks to DevaCurl products, my hair is now healthy, shiny, and full of life, but more importantly, these products have helped me become a self-confident and independent woman,” raves Grand Prize winner Jesse Reese from Boise, ID. When she was given the “constructive” criticism by her college career center that it would be prudent to straighten her hair because curly hair is perceived as unprofessional, Jesse calmly explained that “my hair is a part of who I am and I would never work for an employer who would be so narrow-minded as to not hire someone because of the mere shape of their hair.”

DevaCurl applauds Reese's extraordinary sense of self and commitment to her curls.

“Jesse personifies the DevaCurl message. It’s simple: Learn to love your curls and set them free,” says Massey, who has been leading the curly girl revolution for years and urging curly-haired women everywhere to put down their “blow-fryers” and straightening irons once and for all.

As the Grand Prize winner, Jesse will travel New York City in September where she will be pampered at the new Devachan Salon and DevaSpa with a “day-cation” of heavenly treatments. While in New York, Jesse will have her hair cut, colored and styled by Massey and be part of a photo shoot for Massey’s new book. This much-anticipated follow-up to her extremely successful first book Curly Girl The Handbook debuts in Spring 2010.

Curly Girl Challenge runner-up Zoraida Cabrera.

Zoraida Cabrera of Charlotte, NC, is one of the two runners up selected and shares, “I felt straight hair was equivalent to beauty and perfection. I would get my hair flat ironed or slicked down with so much gel that my curls were scared to stand up and be curls. The Curly Girl Challenge taught me that with the right products and care, my hair is not only manageable but beautiful. My curls are finally free!”

Curly Girl Challenge runner-up Theresa Berggren.

Theresa Berggren of Ithaca, NY, also selected as a runner-up, writes of her Challenge experience, “I sometimes find it hard to believe this is really ‘my hair’ and I am just now for the first time at 50 finding out that I have really nice curls! People come up to me now and say I look like Taylor Swift. Once, I did an internet search to see who she was—I was very flattered!”

Cabrera and Berggren will both receive $200 worth of DevaCurl products and will have their pictures in Massey’s new book.

DevaCurl would like to thank all the women who joined the Curly Girl Challenge and embraced their curls! It was wonderful to see all those beautiful curls and be a part of so many powerful stories of self-acceptance and curl love — you are all winners in our book! Please continue to share your stories and empower all curly girls. DevaCurl products are available at www.devachansalon.com.

The Winning Entries

Jessie Reese

Q: What did you learn from the Curly Girl Challenge?

Reese: DevaCurl has changed more than my hair—it’s changed my total outlook on life. The DevaCurl practices have become my way of existence. Thanks to DevaCurl products, my hair is now healthy, shiny, and full of life, but more importantly, these products have helped me become a self-confident and independent woman. I have a bank of recollections which contain a plethora of memories (both good and bad) relating to my hair. After reading the prompt for this essay, one memory in particular stands out. In college I participated in a mock interview with my university’s career center in order to better prepare myself for future job interviews. I had just discovered the product line, and with the help of DevaCurl and my Deva Stylist, Julia, I had never been more excited to be a curly girl. Upon the faux interviews completion I was given some “constructive” criticism which I will never forget. The young man conducting the interview told me that for future interviews it would be prudent of me to straighten my hair because curly hair is unprofessional. I have never in my life been more offended. I calmly explained to him that my hair is a part of who I am, and I would never work for any employer who would be so narrow minded as to not hire someone because of the mere shape of their hair. DevaCurl has helped me love my hair, and has given me the confidence to stand up to people who believe that women must fit a certain mold- and that mold requires straight hair. I am determined to break the mold and show others that curly girls are empowered women and that we are here to stay. We’re girls! We have curls! Get used to it!

Q: How has it changed your hair?

Reese: Before using DevaCurl my curls were simply uninspired. I wore my hair in a ponytail day in and day out in attempt to hide the fact that my hair was different. My entire life I wanted to be like all the other girls whose ponytails swooshed from side to side as they walked and whose hair tumbled down their backs in an orderly manner. Today, thanks to DevaCurl, I’m rocking out to a different tune. As I walk my glossy curls bounce with each step I take. DevaCurl has given my hair that extra polish it needed for me feel comfortable wearing it down. My curls are now an extension of my personality: bubbly and vivacious, and the product line has given me the opportunity to show my hair off to the world. Before stumbling upon DevaCurl I refused to take risks with my hair, but today I let my imagination run wild when it comes to my locks. If you ask any of my friends they will tell you that I am the poster child for DevaCurl products. Whenever I meet someone with curly hair I immediately tell them about the product line and what it has done for me. Nothing makes me happier than to helping a fellow curly girl embrace her hair for what it is- positively beautiful and unique! Thank you from the very bottom of my heart for helping me learn to love and accept my hair. Words cannot even begin to express my sincere gratitude for this product line.

Zoraida Cabrera

Q: What did you learn from the Curly Girl Challenge?

Cabrera: The Curly Girl challenge has taught me to embrace my curls and to set them free. Before this challenge, I felt straight hair was equivalent to beauty and perfection. In order to feel attractive I would get my hair flat ironed or I would have it pulled back and slicked down with so much gel that my curls were scared to stand up and be curls. I have learned that with the right products and proper care my hair is not only manageable but beautiful. After taking this challenge I can honestly say that I love my curls. No more "poo" for me!

Q: How has it changed your hair?

Cabrera:With the DevaCurl products and styling techniques my curls have become more defined and softer. My hair has luster because it is well conditioned and humidity is no longer my archenemy. I enjoy my curls so much now that they haven't seen a tight bun or a flat iron since I started this challenge. My curls are finally free!

Theresa Berggren

Q: What did you learn from the Curly Girl Challenge?

Berggren: I probably should have waited and had my hair styled professionally for my after shot.;o) I always fought the natural curl in my hair because it always frizzed, however I have found that conditioning is the key and that I had amazing curls hidden away in all that frizz. It's all about quality products and knowledge.

Q: How has it changed your hair?

Berggren: People that have known me for years now ask me if I got my hair permed. I tell them "no" but I know some don't believe me(they have that "yeah sure" look, lol) Actually I sometimes find it hard to believe this is really "my hair" and I am just now for the first time at 50 finding out that I have really nice curls!! Oh another interesting change is I get people (not tons but a few) that come up to me now and say "you know who you look like? Taylor Swift!" I didn't even know who she was, I had to do an internet search to find out. Of course once I did I was very flattered. LOL

As co-founder of NaturallyCurly.com, a website for curly hair she began with her business partner and friend, Gretchen Heber, Michelle Breyer helped create the leading community and resource for people with curly hair. Frustrated by the lack of information on curly hair and the limited products available in the marketplace, the duo launched the site in 1998 with the help of a 14-year-old web designer. When Procter & Gamble called three years later to advertise to the NaturallyCurly.com® audience, Breyer knew they had indeed created a force in the industry, providing helpful information and unparalleled expertise for what was then considered a niche market.